Do you really need to rehome your dog?

There are many reasons why you may feel you need to rehome your dog, but it doesn’t always have to end in rehoming.

At WKD Trained Dogs we put out ‘wanted’ adverts for the popular breeds that our clients desire and if a dog is suitable, we will train them and match them up to a new loving family.

In doing that, we’ve discovered a few common reasons why people feel they have to rehome their dog.

If you are planning to buy a dog, we encourage you to think about the future, and any reasons why you feel you may have to rehome the dog.

Here are the five most common reasons we see for people rehoming their dogs, and steps you can take to prevent it.

Behavioural problems in the dog
This is probably the most common reason for rehoming a dog. Living with a dog with behavioural problems can be frustrating and upsetting.

There are a multiple reasons why a dog might have behavioural problems, and the most likely reason is that you and your dog didn’t receive adequate training in the first place.

We offer a four week residential training course, where your dog will come and stay with WKD Trained Dogs. We will teach your dog general obedience to ensure they behave correctly in your home and out on the lead, and we can target any specific issues your dog has, such as chewing, or aggression.

Once training is over, we will hand your dog back to you and teach you all the commands, and give you all the information you need to know to ensure your dog’s behaviour doesn’t lapse.

Family demands
When people come to us for a family dog, we encourage them to think about the future and anticipate any changes that may result in them feeling they have to rehome the dog. Most commonly this is a new baby, or a new job.

If your job is preventing you from spending as much time as you want to with your dog, consider doggy daycare, hiring a dog walker, using Borrow My Doggy, or ask if you can take your dog to work. More and more offices allow their employees to take their dog to work now, if they are well behaved of course.

When you have a baby, you may be concerned about how your dog will behave around the baby, and adapt to a huge change in your household.

There are some basic ground rules you can set to make yourself feel more comfortable and relaxed about your dog and your baby:
• If your baby is on the floor, the dog must be in its bed
• Do not allow your dog to jump up when you are carrying the baby
• Always supervise your dog and baby – never leave them alone in the same room
• Make sure your dog has a den / safe place (such as a crate) before the baby is born, where you can put them when you inevitably have lots of visitors in the first few weeks
• If your dog’s routine will change, establish this before the baby arrives so that the dog is used to it. For example, your dog’s meal or walk times might change, and get your dog used to walking next to a pushchair.

All of our dogs are sociable animals, who are great with children as most of them go on to become trained family dogs, and will meet children that visit our site.

If we are aware that client is expecting a baby, or planning to have one in the near future, we can do number of things, such as:
• Train the dog to walk alongside a pushchair
• Ensure the dog only plays with their toys; they won’t pick up dummies and the like
• Play soundtracks of a baby crying so that they are not alarmed by the noise

Relationship breakdown
The breakdown of a relationship can be incredibly stressful, and can result in people rehoming their dogs. The most common reasons for this are the dog’s energy levels being too high and the owner feels they cannot manage it, or the owner doesn’t feel they can give the dog the time he or she needs.

If it’s a case of your dog’s behaviour being too much to handle, our four-week residential training course can vastly improve their behaviour and correct any specific issues your dog has.

If you feel you can’t give your dog the time and attention he or she deserves, consider using a dog walking service, or doggy daycare. If you still feel that it isn’t enough, it’s probably in the dog’s best interests that he or she goes to a new home.

Moving abroad, or to a pet-free property
If you are renting, you may find that a lot of properties say they do not allow pets. The DogsTrust run a scheme called Lets With Pets which can help you find a pet friendly landlord, and gives you tips on finding accommodation for your dog.

It can also be useful to make up a ‘CV’ for your pet to give to potential landlords, explaining their behaviour and personality, and listing any training courses your dog has done. If you can prove that your dog is well behaved, a landlord is much more likely to look favourably upon allowing your dog to live in the property.

Taking your dog to live abroad with you is not as hard as you might think. We regularly train dogs in the UK, and send them to live with families all over the world.

When we send dogs to their new loving family by airplane, we have to:
• Get a fit-to-fly letter, which will be issued by our vets no more than 10 days before travel
• Ensure the dog has had a rabies vaccination, and has proof of it in their pet passport (a pet passport is usually around £100)
• The airline will send us documents to complete, along with a travel crate with water trays, and stickers that we have to apply

You will be able to get further information about travelling abroad with your pet from your vets.

Owner’s ill-health
Unfortunately there may be a time in yours, or a family member’s life, where you feel you can’t look after your dog anymore.

If it’s a temporary issue, consider finding a dog sitter, or using Borrow My Doggy.

If it’s likely to be a permanent issue, then it is probably in the dog’s best interest that he or she finds a new family.

If you want to find out more about our residential training course, or have a popular breed of dog that you are looking to rehome, please do not hesitate to get in touch with us.